Grassroots Exchange & Education

CGP Grant Program - Category 2 Grantees 2012

Five College Center for East Asian Studies (FCCEAS) Northampton, MA
Peace Education in Japan and the U.S.: A Curriculum for U.S. Classrooms
Project Director: Anne Prescott
$68,629.00
Ten teachers and two study tour leaders will travel to Hiroshima, Nagasaki and Kyoto for 12 days in June 2013 for the purposes of learning about peace education in Japan and creating a curriculum for use in their own classrooms back in the U.S. The group will participate in a one-day symposium on peace education with teachers and 9th grade students at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. Other activities will include A-bomb survivor testimonials, meetings with local teachers, tours of the Nagasaki National Peace Memorial Hall and Kyoto World Peace Museum, and discussions with community leaders.

U.S.-Japan Bridging Foundation Washington, DC
Strengthening the Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme Alumni Association (JETAA) Network and Connecting Next Generation Leaders
Project Director: Jean M. Falvey
$70,471.00
The “Strengthening the Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme Alumni Association (JETAA) Network and Connecting New Generation Leaders” project proposes to establish regional networks and organize regional and national conferences and outreach programs. This broad objective will encompass building the infrastructure of JETAA by conducting a strategic planning session, applying for federal nonprofit tax-exempt status, conducting research and analysis of the JETAA’s capacity to improve governance, strengthen the network, and improve the qualify and impact of outreach activity through programming and social media. Idaho Human Rights Education Center (IHREC) Boise, ID **J-Initiative Grantee
International Education Leadership Program and Exchange (Year 3)
Project Director: Dan Prinzing
$82,450
IHREC will conduct a 36 month international education leadership program and exchange that links students and teachers in Idaho with the study of cultural heritage and global partnership with Japan. Building upon IHREC's international Youth LEAD online forum, teachers and students in the US and Japan will explore cultural heritage and global partnership through the lens of the Idaho Content Learning Standards for Geography and Culture.

Primary Source Watertown, MA **J-Initiative Grantee
Accessible Japan: Primary Source's Online Offerings for Educators (Year 3)
Project Director: Deborah Cunningham
$43,039
This project will introduce new programming and resources on Japan that will be easily accessible to both national and international audiences. Primary Source intends to create and offer a replicable online course, an online curriculum cluster of multiple activities for use in the classroom, and an international discussion group. A series of webinars will support this work. Key Primary Source staff will travel to Japan to build partnerships with Japanese educators. Staff will also use technology-based networking tools to conduct outreach efforts and will share their expertise at a US-based conference that focuses on Japan, Asia and/or global studies. While all of these resources, activities, and outreach efforts will be planned and completed during the funding period, access to this work will exist long beyond the duration of the grant, ensuring maximum impact.
Japan Society New York, NY **J-Initiative Grantee
Going Global (Year 2)
Project Director: Robert Fish, Ph.D.
$58,266
The objects are 1) to build a network of schools to further global understanding and dialogue, 2) to create meaningful communication and interaction amongst the participants related to learning objectives established by their schools, 3) through direct participation, to improve student competency and motivation for learning in the area of international studies, foreign language, understanding global perspectives, and effective and safe use of social media, 4) to use digital technology to engage interaction across nations and fields, 5) to promote ideas, curricula development, and networking amongst educators to help with the teaching about Japan in schools outside of Japan.
National Association of Japan-America Societies (NAJAS) Washington, DC **J-Initiative Grantee
NAJAS Network Support (Year 3)
Project Director: Makiko Murotani
$95,070
This project will provide an integrated program for small and mid-sized Japan-America Societies by combining structural and program support from the network and NAJAS. The structural component will focus on JAS management and board capacity building and the program component will focus on providing speaker resources to JAS to help with their membership retention and development. The program of structural and program support will strengthen small and mid-sized JAS, and the NAJAS network itself, at a crucial point in US-Japan relations.

Boston Children’s Museum (BCM) Boston, MA **J-Initiative Grantee
Kyo No Machiya Website (Year 2)
Project Director: Leslie Swartz
$72,722
BCM aims to develop an innovative, interactive web-based exploration of the Kyo-no-Machiya (KNM), the historically-significant Japanese House built at BCM in 1979, and all of its many artifacts by 3-D digitalizing all of the key objects in the house and the extensive BCM Japanese collection. With the development of this website, created over three years with significant professional support and input, BCM hopes to launch a participatory global network among children and adults interested in learning about Japan, thereby providing a place for Japan experts and specialists to share their insights, knowledge, and ideas.

Japanese Garden Society of Oregon Portland, Oregon **J-Initiative Grantee
The North American Japanese Garden Association (Year 2)
Project Director: Diana LaRowe
$65,874
The objective of this project is to develop the North American Japanese Garden Association (NAJGA), a network of stakeholders in the field of Japanese garden. NAJGA was established in the Fall of 2011 by leaders from Japan, Canada and the U.S. to foster cultural education and friendship with Japan. The strategic objectives for 2012 include: establish not-for profit status, recruit members, launch an e-newsletter, augment the NAJGA website (with member Directory and Garden Finder features), publish findings of NAJGA research, host inaugural NAJGA Conference at Denver Botanical Gardens, collaborate with NAJGA Japan Consortium and other related organizations.

Sister Cities International (SCI) Washington, DC **J-Initiative Grantee
Leading Asia: Renewing the US and Japan Sister Cities Network (Year 3)
Project Director: Jennelle Root
$70,895
This project will disseminate best practice models, share innovation and progress, and help US and Japan sister cities expand relationships by offering a variety of programs and resources. The project will provide the information and resources needed to improve and broaden the range of activities within US-Japan sister city partnerships with a focus on youth and young professional development, creative economy, and sustainable development. Leading Asia will provide more opportunity for face-to-face exchanges for the next generation of citizen diplomats.

Stanford Program on International and Cross Cultural Education (SPICE), Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University Stanford, CA **J-Initiative Grantee
Reischauer Scholars Program (RSP) (Year 2)
Project Director: Gary Mukai
$72,084
The RSP annually selects 25 exceptional high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors from throughout the United States to engage in an intensive study of U.S.- Japan relations. The RSP provides students with a broad overview of Japanese history, literature, religion, arts, politics, and economics with a special focus on the U.S.- Japan relationship through lectures from scholars, diplomats, and other professionals.
US Center for Citizen Diplomacy (USCCD) Des Moines, IA **J-Initiative Grantee
J Center: Strengthening Japan/US Relations in the Midwest Region of the United States; A Division of CDC Development Solutions (Year 3)
Project Director: Ann Schodde
$70,802
The objective of the project is to create a center that will serve to increase awareness of existing organizations and opportunities for engagement in citizen diplomacy activities focused on Japan, among Americans of all ages living in the Midwest region of the United States. The ten Midwest region states to be the focus of the center include Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, North Dakota and South Dakota. One planning trip to Japan will be conducted in Year 1 to identify appropriate organizational partners to work with.

Japan-America Society of Washington D.C. Washington, D.C. **J-Initiative Grantee
National Japan Bowl Network (Year 2)
Project Director: Risa Kamio
$56,622
This project will create a network of organizations interested in promoting and supporting the study of Japanese language at the high school level, with local Japan Bowl competitions as the unifying link. The project will also promote and support the establishment and development of local Japan Bowl and Japan Quiz Bowl programs throughout the US as a means of supporting the next generation of leaders for US-Japan relations, developing Japan-related information resources, and creating network opportunities for students and teachers of Japanese.

University of Colorado Boulder, CO **J-Initiative Grantee
J-OPP: Japan Online Professional Programs for Western Region Teachers (Year 1)
Project Director: Lynn Parisi
$80,900
The objectives of this project are to 1) Establish and expand networks and programs in K-12 Japan outreach, 2) Develop and deliver customized online courses and resource databases on Japan to K-12 educators in underserved Midwest and Mountain West states, 3) disseminate exemplary and innovative curriculum materials developed by projects around the country to underserved areas, 4) Provide customized educational services on Japan to underserved areas of the Midwest and Mountain West, 5) Implement teacher workshop and professional development models that demonstrate the potential to change traditional concepts of outreach by using new technologies, 6) evaluate the program, and 7) maintain program products for use beyond the J-OPP project.

Asian Art Museum (AAM) San Francisco, CA **J-Initiative Grantee
Bridge Japan Project (Year 2)
Project Director: Deborah Clearwaters
$88,910
The Bridge Japan Project will build the capacity of the Asian Art Museum to make meaningful contributions to US-Japan exchange by evaluating and refining existing K-12 resources; developing an online, searchable resource for K-12 teachers and students that includes standards based lesson plans, art, video, and primary and secondary literature, and through regional and national online training to support teachers in using these resources.
Japan Center for International Exchange New York, NY ** J-Support Grantee
Facilitating US-Japan Civil Society Collaboration for Recovery from the Great East Japan Earthquake (Year 2)
Project Director: Atsuko Geiger
$100,000
This project will seek to develop new programs to support the growth of the Japanese NGO/NPO sector by: 1) launching an innovative feedback loop program that converts stories from beneficiaries into data; 2) deepening relationships with Japanese NPOs and NGOs for activation in disasters outside of Japan; and 3) carrying out open workshops and distributing materials and tools for organizational development, including in particular fundraising capacity building for any interested Japanese NPOs or NGOs.
This project will also support more donors to engage philanthropically in Japan by developing programs for existing GlobalGiving partners and providing new tools for Japan-based corporations to engage in global philanthropy.